“.”
Chen Fan narrowed his eyes slightly, silently observing everything before him. After activating the “Evernight Lord” panel, he had obtained blueprints for five basic buildings, as well as one special building.
The “Beast Trap” was that special building.
A beast trap was not a particularly difficult trap to make, but only a “Beast Trap” crafted by an architect possessed special building effects and could injure eerie creatures.
As for the remaining five basic buildings, they were—
“City Wall,” “Farmland,” “Arrow Tower,” “Wooden House,” and “Sacrificial Tower.”
After observing for a while, he quietly withdrew and headed back toward his own camp.
As he approached the camp, he saw Lame Monkey sitting on the ground from afar, weaving hemp rope while constantly looking around on guard.
Seeing Chen Fan return, Lame Monkey hurriedly rose and stepped forward to report.
“Young Master!”
“I’ve already woven a hemp rope three meters long. It’s just that the conditions are lacking—there’s no limewater, and it hasn’t been dried in the sun. This withered grass also isn’t as good as hemp stalks, so it might not be very sturdy.”
“No matter.”
Chen Fan shook his head. “As long as it can more or less be used. It doesn’t need to be too sturdy.”
“Have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“Eat some dry rations.”
“I saw there isn’t much dry ration left. I’m fine going hungry for a few meals. I got used to starving in the past.”
“No need.” Chen Fan turned his head to look into the depths of the wasteland, his brows knitting slightly. “We have work to do tonight. You’ll only have strength if you eat your fill. Don’t worry about the food. I’ll think of something.”
The Chen family had dumped him at this station with no intention of letting him return alive, so naturally, they had not left much dry ration behind. The nearest market, “Jiangbei Market,” was still a very long distance away from him.
However, the other nearby stations should not be lacking food and water.
With the Chen family’s reputation, perhaps he could exchange some eerie stones for food.
Just then—
Two figures appeared far off on the earthen slope and strode toward their camp. After nearing the camp, the middle-aged man in the lead looked at Chen Fan with a faintly strange expression before cupping his fists in salute.
“You must be the station chief of Station No. 37 of the Jiangbei Chen family, yes?”
“I am Wang Kui, station chief of Station No. 17 of the Qiuhe Wang family.”
A smile appeared on Chen Fan’s face, and he likewise cupped his fists in salute. “Greetings, Station Chief Wang. I am Chen Fan.”
He had seen these two before.
They were from the very station he had just gone to observe. He simply did not know why these two had come to find him.
After coughing lightly, Wang Kui probed, “Station Chief Chen, as far as I know, your Chen family’s Station No. 37 has already been abandoned for over a month. Why has this station suddenly been put back into use?”
“Not many travelers pass through this stretch of road, and there isn’t much profit to be had. Could it be that you’ve heard some news?”
“Although our two families don’t have much of a relationship, those of us sent out to do this sort of hard labor—even if we belong to rival families—ought to stick together a little in this desolate wilderness. If some eerie tide were to riot, neither you nor I would survive.”
“After all, honor belongs to the family, but our lives belong to us. Isn’t that right?”
Chen Fan did not reply at once. He could more or less guess what Wang Kui was thinking. Clearly, the other party had overthought things.
Only, before he could speak,
the man behind Wang Kui said in surprise, “Your name is Chen Fan? That illegitimate son of the Jiangbei Chen family?”
“.”
Chen Fan nodded expressionlessly. “Yes.”
“Slap your mouth.”
A trace of realization flashed through Wang Kui’s eyes. He looked toward his subordinate behind him and feigned anger as he spoke, then forced out a smile and said helplessly, “My man is ignorant. I’ve been on the wasteland too long myself and haven’t kept up with outside affairs for quite some time.”
“My station still needs someone in charge, so I’ll take my leave first.”
After that, he did not linger. Taking his subordinate with him, he turned and left.
On the wasteland.
Wang Kui walked across the cracked earth with his subordinate, his brows slightly furrowed as he asked, “What exactly is that Chen Fan’s background? Tell me in detail.”
Ever since he began serving the Wang family, he had basically stayed at stations the whole time, working for a full thirteen years.
However, he would rotate stations once every year.
He really was not clear on gossip like this.
“This matter is actually pretty famous.”
The bronze-skinned man behind him scratched at the dry flakes on his face and grinned. “It’s that old man of the Chen family. When he was young and inherited the position of family head, the Chen family wasn’t as strong as it is now. The main reason was that the family didn’t have an architect.”
“But I’ll say this.”
“When Family Head Chen was young, he was quite handsome. He met a female cultivator, a level-four architect. That female cultivator didn’t have much of a background either—she was a pure rogue cultivator. After Family Head Chen shamelessly pursued her and won her over, she bore him a son. That was Chen Fan.”
“After that, relying on this level-four architect, the Chen family slowly gained a firm footing in Jiangbei.”
“But when Chen Fan was still young, that woman died. Then Family Head Chen formed a marriage alliance with the Pingtian Commerce Association and had two sons and one daughter. Those are the current heirs. The dowry included a level-five architect as an honored retainer.”
“The architect retainer the Chen family has now came from the Pingtian Commerce Association.”
“Think about it. This new wife has an architect backing her from behind, so of course she wants her own son to inherit the Chen family. Chen Fan’s status naturally grew lower and lower. At first, Family Head Chen still held on to a sliver of hope, thinking that since Chen Fan’s mother was an architect, perhaps Chen Fan might awaken as an architect too.”
“After all, an honored retainer is definitely not as stable as having an architect from within your own clan.”
“The result was obvious. His awakening failed, and Chen Fan completely lost power. This time, being sent here probably isn’t because they heard any news. If nothing unexpected happens, he was sent here to die.”
“.”
Wang Kui’s brows furrowed slightly. “That can be called an illegitimate son? I thought it meant one born from some maidservant or the like. Isn’t he outright the eldest legitimate son of the first wife?”
“Hey, if his level-four architect mother hadn’t died, then he’d be the eldest legitimate son of the first wife. After she died, he became an illegitimate son.”
“That’s true.”
Wang Kui let out a long sigh. “There really is no end to the filthy dealings inside these great families. In that case…”
He pondered for a moment before speaking.
“Since he was sent here to die, they surely didn’t leave him many eerie stones or much food. In a bit, take some food and water from our camp over to them, and then… bring them five eerie stones as well.”
“Huh?”
The bronze-skinned man froze in place. “Station Chief, the clan will be coming to collect the accounts in half a month. If we give away five eerie stones, the accounts definitely won’t match.”
“I’ll pay out of my own pocket. It won’t go through the station’s accounts.”
“Oh, oh.”
The man scratched the back of his head. “Then that’s fine. It’s just, Station Chief, why are you suddenly being kindhearted? Those two are doomed to die. Even if you give them five eerie stones, they won’t survive more than a few days.”
“It’s not kindness. It’s called an investment.”
Wang Kui shook his head. “The other party is currently in an almost hopeless situation, but when we met just now, that Chen Fan did not ask us for help. That cripple too—his eyes were full of vigilance and wariness, without the slightest trace of despair or fear.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means the other party may not be as hopeless as he seems.”